JIM DVORAK/PAUL DUNMALL/MARK SANDERS/CHRIS
MAPP – Cherry Pickin’
SLAM Productions SLAMCD 294
Paul Dunmall (tenor saxophone, saxello); Mark Sanders (drums); Chris Mapp (bass); Jim Dvorak (trumpet, voice)
Recorded 10th July 2013 at Birmingham Conservatoire
Another impressive release from the SLAM imprint, featuring label regular Paul Dunmall and trumpeter Jim Dvorak, who I know best for his work with the band District Six, Cherry Pickin’ is an interesting mixture of structured themes and free improvisation.
The thematic pieces, all credited to Dvorak, provide a solid platform yet are loose enough for some spirited playing from Dunmall and the nominal leader’s trumpet, ably supported by Chris Mapp and Mark Sanders. Throughout the freewheeling tenor and trumpet solos, bass and drums compellingly converse with, and cajole, the two horns with a rhythmic foundation that in general swings with a vengeance. As if to calm things down, the fine ‘Love’s Own Prayer’ finds Dunmall’s saxophone taking the lead, or role of the preacher, with a quiet and sympathetic supporting role from his colleagues.
Perhaps the finest cut on the album is the closing ‘As Above, So Below’, a glorious twenty minute free improvisation that never meanders and is continuously evolving. From the outset the piece s superbly crafted from quiet beginnings the four participants, all skilled practitioners of this demanding art, avoiding the pitfalls that can all too often occur when four or more voices improvise collectively, with the individual voices contributing fully without over powering the music. Drummer Mark Sanders deserves special mention, often confining himself to a quietly supporting role, only becoming more animated when one of his colleagues sits out for a while, and leaving the appropriate space for him to fill.
Sandwiched between the quartet themes, and the long improvisation are two unusual pieces that feature the voice of Jim Dvorak, quoting from Frank Zappa on ‘Zappped’, and on ‘Getty’s Mother Burg’ reciting text from Lord Buckley’s ‘Gettysburg Address’. Both tracks contain some iron clad instrumental ideas that become somewhat overshadowed by Dvorak’s vocalising that is strangely alluring on the first couple of hearings, but pall after a while. I for one would rather have had the opportunity to have heard more of Dunmall’s saxello that he plays on ‘Getty’s Mother’. Pitching the ‘tipped bell’ soprano with Dvorak’s trumpet would have made for an interesting combination, and exciting new timbre to be explored by this fine improvising quartet.
Reviewed by Nick Lea
SLAM Productions SLAMCD 294
Paul Dunmall (tenor saxophone, saxello); Mark Sanders (drums); Chris Mapp (bass); Jim Dvorak (trumpet, voice)
Recorded 10th July 2013 at Birmingham Conservatoire
Another impressive release from the SLAM imprint, featuring label regular Paul Dunmall and trumpeter Jim Dvorak, who I know best for his work with the band District Six, Cherry Pickin’ is an interesting mixture of structured themes and free improvisation.
The thematic pieces, all credited to Dvorak, provide a solid platform yet are loose enough for some spirited playing from Dunmall and the nominal leader’s trumpet, ably supported by Chris Mapp and Mark Sanders. Throughout the freewheeling tenor and trumpet solos, bass and drums compellingly converse with, and cajole, the two horns with a rhythmic foundation that in general swings with a vengeance. As if to calm things down, the fine ‘Love’s Own Prayer’ finds Dunmall’s saxophone taking the lead, or role of the preacher, with a quiet and sympathetic supporting role from his colleagues.
Perhaps the finest cut on the album is the closing ‘As Above, So Below’, a glorious twenty minute free improvisation that never meanders and is continuously evolving. From the outset the piece s superbly crafted from quiet beginnings the four participants, all skilled practitioners of this demanding art, avoiding the pitfalls that can all too often occur when four or more voices improvise collectively, with the individual voices contributing fully without over powering the music. Drummer Mark Sanders deserves special mention, often confining himself to a quietly supporting role, only becoming more animated when one of his colleagues sits out for a while, and leaving the appropriate space for him to fill.
Sandwiched between the quartet themes, and the long improvisation are two unusual pieces that feature the voice of Jim Dvorak, quoting from Frank Zappa on ‘Zappped’, and on ‘Getty’s Mother Burg’ reciting text from Lord Buckley’s ‘Gettysburg Address’. Both tracks contain some iron clad instrumental ideas that become somewhat overshadowed by Dvorak’s vocalising that is strangely alluring on the first couple of hearings, but pall after a while. I for one would rather have had the opportunity to have heard more of Dunmall’s saxello that he plays on ‘Getty’s Mother’. Pitching the ‘tipped bell’ soprano with Dvorak’s trumpet would have made for an interesting combination, and exciting new timbre to be explored by this fine improvising quartet.
Reviewed by Nick Lea